Thomas Gould (Cork North Central, Sinn Fein)
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626. To ask the Minister for Housing, Planning, and Local Government his plans to improve water quality in the River Lee given the dangerous nitrogen levels found in the river in 2019. [39489/21]

Darragh O'Brien (Dublin Fingal, Fianna Fail)
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Primary responsibility for the monitoring, management, protection and improvement of water quality is assigned to local authorities under the Local Government (Water Pollution) Acts and related legislation.  The Environmental Protection Agency, through its Office of Environmental Enforcement, exercises general supervision in relation to the performance of these functions by local authorities.

However, from a national perspective, the EPA’s recent report ‘Assessment of the catchments that need reductions in nitrogen concentrations to achieve water quality objectives’ highlighted the serious challenges facing Ireland’s Water Environment. Nutrient concentrations are too high and the trends in some areas are going in the wrong direction.  This oversupply of nutrients is coming from agricultural land and from underperforming waste water systems (both urban and domestic).

In terms of agricultural nutrients, my Department is working closely with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine on effective measures to address these issues through the River Basin Management Plan, the Nitrates Action Programme and the Common Agricultural Policy Strategic Plan.

Our policy is to ensure we provide the right measure, in the right place. As outlined in the River Basin Management Plan for the years 2018 to 2021, and now in the EPA’s report, the pressures on water quality can vary across different catchments. As a result it is clear that ‘one-size fits all’ measures are not always fully effective. For example, established under the current River Basins Management Plan, a free advisory service is now available to farmers in priority areas where the EPA identifies agriculture as a significant pressure on water quality.

The Programme for Government commits Ireland to producing a new, stronger River Basin Management Plan in 2022, a draft of which will be published in the coming weeks for public consultation.

Ireland’s Nitrates Action Programme is another key instrument in achieving good water quality. It is designed to prevent pollution of surface waters and groundwater from agricultural sources and to protect and improve water quality. The current regulations run to the end of 2021 and a new Nitrates Action Programme will be published at the beginning of 2022. 

A second consultation phase on the review of the Nitrates Action Programme will be published in the coming weeks. This review is being led by the Nitrates Expert Group, which includes scientific experts from my own Department; the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine; Teagasc and the Environmental Protection Agency. The Nitrates Expert Group will assess the most up to date scientific evidence, and will advise my Department on the measures that should be included in the next Action Programme. The Expert Group are also engaging in bilateral discussions with interested stakeholder groups as part of the review.  

Where urban waste water is causing an impact, Irish Water is investing in improved services and infrastructure through its Capital Investment Plan. Government has also improved targeted financial supports to help bring domestic septic tanks up to standard.

Our entire water system does need substantial and sustained investment over a number of investment cycles to fully improve performance and resilience.  In this regard, as part of Budget 2021, over €1.4 billion was secured to support water services. This includes €1.3 billion in respect of domestic water services provision by Irish Water. This overall investment will deliver significant improvements in public water and wastewater services, support improved water supplies right across Ireland, including rural Ireland, and support a range of programmes delivering improved water quality in our rivers, lakes and marine area.